Valve



Oct. 20, 1936. D, MORSE 2,057,904

VALVE Filed May 19, 1955 "INVENTOR fl2obmgt manor ATTORNEYS Patented Oct. 20, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

My present invention relates to a valve for operating an indicating means which is designed to indicate a condition where an accumulation has reached a pre-determined amount.

There are many conditions under which the accumulation of dust or products of various kinds is created over quite a period and it is very desirable to have some indicating means which will advise the user when that accumulation has reached a certain amount. For sake of clarity of description I have assumed one condition which has provided a very satisfactory use for my device, namely: that condition wherein the accumulation of dust and other foreign materials so impregnate the filter cartridge of an air conditioning unit as to render the same incapable of performing its normally intended function.

The principal object of my present invention is to provide a valve for operating means for indieating that the gradual accumulation of some substance has reached a certain degree or concentration.

A further object of my invention is to provide a valve for operating an indicating means which will operate some visual or audible signal so as to inform the user of the device that a certain condition is attained in the equipment to which the device is applied.

A further object of my present invention is to provide a valve for operating an indicating device which is readily adjustable to indicate the degree of accumulation that has taken place.

A further object of my present invention is to provide a valve for operating means whereby electric switching can be obtained which is so simple in construction that its cost will be relatively low.

Other and more specific objects will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein,

40 Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the essential parts of my device, certain parts being shown in section to better illustrate the same and an electric circuit shown in diagrammatic form.

45 Figure 2 is an enlarged cross sectional view; in

fragmentary form similar to the showing of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a side elevation, with the various 50 parts shown in section, and. in the general relationship indicated in Figure 2.

Referring to the drawing, throughout which like reference characters indicate like parts, It] designates the cabinet housing of any conven- 55 tional type of an air filtering arrangement, which is normally supplied with a fan and suitable motive power. The intent of this device is to draw air, by the fan, thru a cartridge-like filler of fibrous material It, which acts as a filter and sorts out of the air the particles of dust, lint and 5 the like which would otherwise be objectionable. Various materials are used in the filters, but glass or metal foil, such as the so called steel wool and the like being the most commonly used.

Now quite often it happens that the home user 10 will not be sufficiently careful to observe the condition .of his filter cartridge and will often use it when it is almost entirely filled with waste thus defeating entirely the purpose of the filter arrangement and further creating a condition actu- .15 ally injurious to the heating equipment. It is the purpose of .my device to provide means which indicate clearly to the home owner when the cartridge has been sufficiently filled up for all practical purposes. 20

I accomplish this purpose by providing at some point, normally adjacent the filter cartridge, an opening as l8 thru which the fan tends to draw air. Within this opening I place a butterfly valve arrangement which is probably most clearly il- 25 lustrated in Figure 1. This consists of a fixed damper member 20 which is pivotably supported and adapted to swing on pivot 22, and a stop 21 is fixed on the wall of the housing in the path of the movement of the valve to limit its swinging 30 movement. Adapted to slidably be supported upon and in contact with plate 20 is a secondary plate 24. I have found that quite often it is most desirable to make plate 24 somewhat thicker than plate 20 to the end that a state of balance may be maintained and still the dampening surfaces of plates 20 and 24 will be in such a relationship that when draft is finally sufficient to cause the damper to revolve, as a unit, it will revolve in the direction of plate 20. Fixedly secured to the damper, and as a matter of convenience, I prefer to mount it on plate 24, may be any type of electric contact arrangement which will be operated by the tilting of the damper about axle 22. In my present showing I have indicated, as a matter of convenience, a mercury tube switching device, 25, altho I wish it to be understood that any mechanical switching arrangement might be suitably substituted for this device. Connected to tube 26, in the present instance, I have indicated an electric light circuit as 28 fed by any external source of electric current as 30. The light itself, 32, should be placed on the outside of the cabinet and I normally prefer to use a colored light in that it will be most clearly observed and will attract the maximum attention.

Method of operation In installing my device I normally desire to have my damper unit so arranged that when roughly three-quarters of the capacity of the filter cartridge I6 has been used, the damper will operate to close the electric circuit. As a result, when I make an installation I normally cover with paper or other suitable air-tight shielding means, the cartridge Hi to a degree that three-quarters of it or more will be covered in such a manner that air cannot pass thru it. Then I adjust my damper by sliding plate 24 back and forth within its guideway 34 until the damper is slightly heavy on the end toward plate 24.

The shielding means is then removed and the device put in operation. Then as the cartridge becomes filled to the pre-determined degree, in this instance the draft which is being constantly created by the above mentioned fan will work against the damper and as its one side toward plate 20 exposes the greater surface to the air draft, the damper will be revolved so that the electric circuit is completed and will remain completed until the cartridge is changed or removed.

Many details have been omitted from this description in that it is felt that they are quite evident frcm the drawing forming part of this application. For instance the manner of supporting pivot shaft 22 is a matter of convenience. I have indicated it as being supported at one end in the frame of the cabinet itself and at the other end by the angle 36 which normally forms the supporting means for the cartridge I6.

I have indicated throughout my specifications and drawing my device as operating an electric switch which in turn energizes a signal light. I wish it to be clearly understood however that the device could operate mechanically, a visual signal or it could be arranged with an electric switch, not necessarily of the mercury tube type, for the control of an electric circuit. This circuit might instead of energizing the light 32 energize a relay or other switching means for the control of the above mentioned electric motor or it might be carried further to control and throw out the master switch on the motive power used with the heat producing unit if a mechanical stoker or oil burner were used. Or in case of an ordinary furnace or sawdust burner it might control the draft of the same.

The foregoing description and the accompanying drawing are believed to clearly disclose a preferred embodiment of my invention but it will be understood that this disclosure is merely illustrative and that such changes in the invention may be made as are fairly within the scope and spirit of the following claim.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

In a valve device for an air filter, a housing having an opening, a normally closed valve for said opening having a pivot at one side of its center and a stop on the wall of the housing in the path of swinging-movement of the longer side of the valve to limit its opening movement, said valve having inturned side flanges extending transversely of its pivot along the edges of the shorter side of the valve, and an overbalancing plate slidably mounted on the valve between said flanges, and forming a part of the valve.

ROBERT D. MORSE. 

